In what has to go down in the history books as the best bounce back from a bad relationship ever, Eric Smith used the engagement ring he intended to propose with to buy a full-size suit of Master Chief's iconic green armor from the Halo series.

Preparing to embark on a new phase in life, Smith picked out a specific ring made to his girlfriend's tastes. That's when he found out she was seeing someone else. And that's the last we will mention her.

Desperately needing to unload the ring (as one would do) he found his only option for selling a custom ring was through eBay. But selling the ring wasn't enough. The money he received couldn't mend his broken heart and he felt the need to do something big with it.

As with most things in love the story is in the nuances. And we are glad to report that in this case the love story isn't about him and his broken heart. It's about his love of Halo. Smith decided to take the money and invest in a suit of Master Chief armor, another long time love and dream.

This wasn't just any costume shop suit; in fact Smith had been thinking about the ideal suit of armor for a long time but had expected to defer the purchase until later. An artist out of Detroit built him a 40-pound dark green suit made out of carbon fiber and steel. The helmet complete with an orange visor and LED's came from a master Stormtooper builder out of the Philippines. We didn't even know there was a master Stormtrooper builder in the Philippines, so clearly Smith did his homework.

By his own account, the suit is cumbersome, hot, takes up space and he has to walk incredibly slowly while wearing it. Strangely, not unlike a relationship.

But let's face it, that's what this suit of armor is. To Smith, it was more than just a toy, but a way to fight his broken heart and what better way to do it that with the ultimate homage to something that has brought you comfort and happiness over the years?

We think it is a love story after all. Dude, you made the right choice.

The Bygone Bureau, via Geekosystem, via Fashionably Geeky